Nice to meet you all. My name is Daiki.
The other day, I went on my first pilgrimage to anime locations as part of my university graduation program! I am writing this blog as a pilgrimage journal of my actual pilgrimage to anime locations.
I visited Kitano Ijinkan-Gai in Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture.
This place is sacred place for two animes of the "Fate" series, "Fate/Stay Night [Unlimited Blade Works(UBW）" and "Fate/Zero, which have gained popularity through various media such as games, anime, and comics.
First, I visited the Weathercock House. Many people may think of this place when they think of Kitano Ijinkan. It was built around 1909 as the residence of Mr. Gottfried Thomas, a German trader. In 1976, it was designated as a National Important Cultural Property. On the day of the visit, there were many students taking group photos and ordinary people taking photos and drawing pictures. This house is the model for the exterior of the heroine Rin Tohsaka's house, known as "Tohsaka Residence" in "UBW".
The house is a high level of reproduction compared to scenes in the anime, with some differences but still retaining its characteristic features.
Also, since the location of the pavilion is up the hill from Sannomiya Station, nature becomes more visible. The location in the anime also has a lot of nature around it, so I felt the anime's attention to detail in this respect as well.
These photos were taken inside the Weathercock House. The windows, railings, and other parts of the building were used as backgrounds for the animation, so that even when I was taking the pictures, I felt as if the characters were right there.
Even the wooden box behind Rin in her childhood was captured as a model.
Next, I visited Uroko House located further up the mountain from the Weathercock House.
Of course, Uroko House is also a traditional building, a national tangible cultural property, and one of the 100 best Hyogo residences.
In "UBW," the building was the model for the house where the other heroine, Sakura Matou, and her brother-in-law, Shinji Matou, live. The interior is also modeled after the background in the anime, but this one is used for Rin Tohsaka's house.
Following the sign, we walked up a slightly steep slope, which was hard on my sore muscles. The road was also surrounded by trees, so I aimed at the pavilion, feeling the gloomy atmosphere of Matou.
Even though it is a magnificent building in normal view, I strolled through the pavilion with a bit of wariness, thinking that there might be something there because of the images of the cartoon in my mind.
The inside of the house is beautifully arranged like photos.
Furthermore, the garden house in the garden was decorated with posters and famous scenes from "Fate/Stay Night Heaven's Feel the Movie". Kobe City had previously held a collaboration campaign with the movie when it was released, and I was somewhat pleased to see that even after it was over, they still kept it like this, showing that they cherish the connection with the work.
The above two buildings were the main location, but there are other sites for "Fate" as well.
This slope is also a place that appears in the anime, but the difference from the previous two is that this is a place that appears as a background. Even though I relied on the Internet to find the fence on the left and the stone piles, I couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment when I found this place. It looked like just a slope, but it was also a place where I could hear an important conversation in the work, so as a fan, my excitement level increased.
This is the end of my walk in Kitano Ijinkan-Gai, though I have visited several spots.
I moved on to the Kobe Bridge area.
This Bridge is a red arched bridge connecting Kobe and Port Island.
In the area around the bridge alone, I was able to find sacred places from various angles and take pictures of them. Unlike the Kitano Ijinkan-gai, there were few people and I thought it was a bit lonely, but I kept the thought in my mind that I could take pictures without worrying about anything and took many pictures while exploring the position and angle of view of the bridge and buildings.
Thank you for reading this far!
This is my first time writing a blog, so I hope it gives you an idea of how much fun it is to make a pilgrimage to a anime location!
From the outside, it might look a little strange that I was taking pictures while holding up a picture, but I was enjoying myself tremendously. It was strange that the higher the quality of the reproduction of even a mere handrail or steel frame, the more excited I became.
If you are interested in making a pilgrimage to a holy place, please visit the holy place of your favorite work. I brought photos and took pictures , but I think everyone has their own way of enjoying it, so whether it's immersing yourself in a scene from the work or getting into the world view by cosplaying, I think you'll have a different kind of fun.
Once again, thank you very much for taking the time to read my blog.